Thanksgiving & Christmas

Well, we got so busy with the holidays and graduation, and other stresses that I never posted about the holidays.  My family was moving over Thanksgiving so they weren't really planning on having an official Thanksgiving dinner.  So thanks to my wonderful in-laws they were able to join Brody's family for Thanksgiving and then get right back to unpacking.  We were excited for the second year in a row of having our families together for Thanksgiving and we love the family time and of course the food!  But unfortunately fate had other plans for Brody and I.  Earlier in the week I had felt sick and had actually thrown up once.  But I'd been going through a lot of stress with problems at work and figured it had resulted from the stress... and maybe it had.  But the night before Thanksgiving, I woke up so sick.  After throwing up a few times Brody started to realize he wasn't feeling so great either.  And the long LONG bout of sickness began.  After the two of us had thrown up for several hours we finally figured we better call someone to pick up Alydia before she got the bug too.  So Holly (Brody's mom) graciously came at 5am (way too early, bless her heart) and picked up Alydia and brought us a few things to calm our stomachs.  We hoped that it would be over within a few hours and we would at least make it there in the late afternoon.  We did, but we were not feeling better.  So Thanksgiving was over, and we missed it.  We were so bummed!  Then, to top it off, Holly got sick too!  Poor Holly!  I felt so bad that she got sick after helping us so much!

So about a week later when we were feeling much better.  I decided that I would surprise Brody and just make a Thanksgiving dinner for the three of us (technically the two of us since Lydi couldn't eat much).  Now I'm no fancy cook.  I don't have a lot of great skills in the kitchen.  And I had definitely never taken on a project this big alone.  But I was determined to make it perfect!  I gathered several of the Kinard (Holly's family) traditional family recipes and made quite the shopping list.  I figured out Brody's schedule and arranged everything so that I would have plenty of time to get things done.

I will admit.  Things were way rushed, and I was running around like mad.  I don't think Alydia got very much loving and attention from me that day.  Luckily she entertains herself pretty well.  But believe it or not, I did it!  I made a turkey, mashed potatoes, some kind of raspberry/orange/red hot jello, homemade rolls, homemade pie crust and homemade chocolate pie filling and of course some canned veggies.  I really cannot believe that it all turned out.  I think I totally shocked Brody that I actually pulled it off.  He is a much better cook than I am.  But I couldn't be more proud that I did it.  And if I do say so myself, it was delicious!  (And of course in all my panic for perfection I took absolutely no pictures.)

Christmas, luckily we managed to get away with just a slight cold from Lydi and were able to stay healthy otherwise.  It was low-key and traditional and we spent Christmas Eve/Holly's birthday with the Hortons, and then stayed at my parents that night.  Then after opening presents we went back over to the Hortons for more spoiling.  We are so blessed to have such generous families!  We received way more than we needed and loved it!  Alydia got so many cute clothes size 12 months (when she was 6 months) that now fit her perfectly.  She is a big girl and is growing out of her clothes so quickly!  It was fun to see Lydi excited mostly that she was getting so much attention for ripping some kind of bright paper on lots of boxes.  Then opening all the toys she could hardly decide which to play with.

The new year has been welcomed with much excitement about the future and this upcoming year.  We are so excited that Brody is graduated and has a good job.  We are excited to be in my grandparents house while they are on a mission.  We're excited for Alydia to continue growing and learning and exploring.  We are also especially excited that we get to go to Tahiti this July!  Brody has been waiting for quite a while to go back and visit his mission and we finally get to go!  We will miss our Lydi girl for those ten days, but I think paradise will help to ease the sadness.

Yes, Brody actually took this picture on his mission.  Love it! :)